This invention relates to a high-density type cultivation equipment which is used in mechanized concentrated agriculture such as hydroponics, greenhouse floriculture, and so on and which utilizes almost the whole site area to cultivation, or more particularly to a high-density type cultivation equipment that has an improved mechanism for transfer a cultivation bed from one main rail track to another.
High-density type cultivation equipment that utilize almost the whole site area to cultivation is disclosed in JPH 2-56048 and JPH 2-28688, for example, and is well-known.
The high-density type cultivation equipment described in said JPH 2-56048 has a plurality of cultivation beds arranged in dense rows on main rail tracks and can maintain a single passage between any selected two adjacent beds which is of a width suitable for carrying out agricultural work and in which can be provided a carrier wagon for agricultural use to span the passage on rail elements that serve also as structural members of the cultivation beds on the both sides of the passage. In this high-density type cultivation equipment, the beds make reciprocal movement only to make clearance for a passage and do not move in a cycle. The workers, therefore, must be in the greenhouse and move in a cycle along the rows of beds in order to do agricultural work such as the treatment of plants and harvesting. Under such severe labor conditions, work efficiency is naturally poor and the merits of mechanization and labor-saving are very limited.
In the high-density type cultivation equipment described in JPH 2-28688, the cultivation beds are provided in rows on a plurality of main rail tracks laid in parallel position with the minimum clearance therebetween necessary to avoid mutual interference between cultivation beds on two adjacent tracks. At both ends of the main rail tracks are provided transfer wagons which transfer the cultivation beds arriving at the ends of one of the main rail tracks onto the adjacent main rail track. This high-density type cultivation equipment has a big merit of labor saving and mechanization, since the cultivation beds move in cyclic paths and workers do not have to move around in the greenhouse but can stay in a particular position to do agricultural work such as plant treatment and harvesting. But, since the transfer wagons, which transfer cultivation beds which arrive at the end of one of the main rail tracks to the adjacent rail pairs, are indispensable and said transfer wagons must transfer the cultivation beds in a shuttle motion, the space necessary for return travel must be subtracted from the cultivation area and the time loss thereby caused reduces the efficiency. And further, providing of the transfer wagons and the control system pushes up the cost.
The primary object of the invention is to provide high-density type cultivation equipment wherein the cultivation beds that reach the end of one of main rail tracks can be transferred to the adjacent main rail track automatically, and which, since the tranferring mechanism is able to be provided without occupying any substantial area, enhances effectiveness of mechanized concentrated agriculture.
Another object of the invention is to provide high-density type cultivation equipment which dispenses with all of the agricultural work passages and hence can utilize almost the whole site area for cultivation, thereby increasing harvest and profits.
A further object of the invention is to provide a high-density type cultivation equipment wherein movement of the cultivation beds is effected easily to equalize growing of plants and which, through the simple structure of the equipment and ease of automatization, relieves the workers from severe labor conditions of high temperature and high humidity and thereby contributes to efficient and stable agricultural work and to reduction of labor.